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Research: Things you need to know about student credit cards - Credit-Land.com

There was a time when student credit cards were amongst the easiest to obtain. In fact for a lot of students, it was the best way of starting the process of building a credit history. Credit card companies would often promote the student credit cards within college campus. However, the new credit card reforms have brought a lot of changes to the way student credit cards can be given out. Here are things to know about student credit cards.

Age restriction

A lot of students who are looking to benefit from a shiny card in their wallet will have to think again because there are some age related restrictions on the credit cards. Prior to the CARD Act, credit card companies used to send pre-screened credit cards to students by mails. These cards could then be used almost immediately by the students thus eliminating the lengthy and tiresome credit card approval process. But the new rules have put an end to all those promotional tactics. In fact credit card companies might not directly promote their credit card within the campuses anymore. Most importantly there is age restriction on the credit cards. Those who are below 21 years of age will not be provided with a credit card unless a co-signor signs along with the student. This would be either parents of the student or guardian. But this definitely eliminates the possibility of students owning credit cards without the knowledge of their parents or guardians. Students who have an income and can prove it can still get the credit cards without the co-signor, but this is generally a rare scenario.

Co-signor’s credit history

If a co-signor helps you out to get a credit card, you need to be aware that bad history on your credit card account could reflect in your co-signor’s credit history too. The co-signor is therefore not only responsible for the debt but also for bad credit card practices. This is all the more reason why you should be careful in the way you use the student credit cards.

Using the student credit cards

Student credit cards shouldn’t really be used for unnecessary expenses that you cannot manage to repay. However, these cards are greatly helpful to build a credit history so that you have a good credit rating by the time you leave college and have your own job. You can develop good history by using card for responsible expenses and then paying the bills on time.

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